Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) Lowered to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday.

MTX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of Minerals Technologies in a report on Monday, May 4th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Minerals Technologies from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Minerals Technologies from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.00.

Minerals Technologies Price Performance

MTX opened at $75.15 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.63 and a beta of 1.14. Minerals Technologies has a 1 year low of $53.94 and a 1 year high of $84.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $75.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.06.

Minerals Technologies (NYSE:MTX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.64 by ($0.04). Minerals Technologies had a positive return on equity of 10.63% and a negative net margin of 3.13%.The firm had revenue of $548.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $558.77 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.55 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Minerals Technologies will post 6.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Minerals Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Minerals Technologies’s payout ratio is presently -22.12%.

Insider Activity at Minerals Technologies

In related news, VP Timothy Jordan sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.27, for a total value of $481,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,279 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,665.33. This trade represents a 82.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Minerals Technologies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTX. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Minerals Technologies by 28.4% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 19,629 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,249,000 after purchasing an additional 4,337 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Minerals Technologies by 9.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 110,044 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $6,995,000 after purchasing an additional 9,363 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in Minerals Technologies by 177.6% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 68,156 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,333,000 after purchasing an additional 43,604 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Minerals Technologies by 30.5% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 18,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,176,000 after purchasing an additional 4,322 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Minerals Technologies during the first quarter worth $70,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.29% of the company’s stock.

About Minerals Technologies

Minerals Technologies Inc develops, produces and processes a broad range of mineral-based products and solutions that serve a variety of industrial applications. Its offerings include bentonite, perlite, precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), mineral sands, foundry additives, performance minerals and specialty chemicals designed to enhance performance in markets such as paper, steel, construction, oil and gas, environmental remediation and consumer products.

The company operates through several business segments, including Specialty Minerals, Refractory Minerals, Performance Materials and Recycled Materials.